Surviving in the General's Mansion - Chapter 120

“If they dumped him here, Yaqing should have gone this way!”

Dongfang Wei studied the broad road before them.

“If they had a large party, this route would be suitable for carriages.”

Cang Chuli analyzed the situation calmly. “They may also have discarded him here deliberately to mislead us.”

“We cannot dismiss any possibility,” Dongfang Wei said in a grave voice. With Yaqing’s safety at stake, they could not afford the slightest mistake.

Cang Chuli looked at him. “Split up and search?”

Xia Heng was a little worried. Yaqing had said there were twenty or thirty people just standing watch at night. Would either group have enough men if they divided their forces?

Yet she understood Dongfang Wei’s concern as well.

She might have a phone, but she did not have navigation! Until they actually found Xiao Yaqing, even she could not be absolutely certain they were headed in the right direction.

After a moment’s hesitation, Dongfang Wei said, “Take your men up the mountain. I’ll take mine along this road. If I don’t find her, I’ll come support you on the other route at once!”

Cang Chuli nodded and gave an order to the men behind him.

“Mo Qing, go with His Majesty. If this route is wrong, bring His Majesty back and head straight up the mountain.

“Go to the stream where we camped three years ago!”

“Yes, General!”

The two groups parted ways. Xia Heng noticed that only a handful of Cang Chuli’s Personal Guards followed Dongfang Wei and asked uneasily, “His Majesty isn’t taking any men?”

“The imperial shadow guards are tracking in dispersed formation. He has plenty of people around him.”

No sooner had Cang Chuli finished speaking than several mounted figures flashed through the woods nearby.

Only then did Xia Heng nod. Good.

The party of more than three hundred continued on horseback for over two hours, until even the horses were sweating from exertion.

Only when they reached a clearing did Cang Chuli order everyone to dismount and extinguish their torches.

“We’ll take a shortcut from here. If so many of us continue on horseback, anyone in the area will certainly notice.

“It is less than two hours on foot from here to the place you drew.”

Xia Heng nodded as she listened to Cang Chuli’s explanation, but her mind was already working. Two hours on foot along a mountain trail meant the place should be within a five-kilometer radius, right? She needed to check the map and confirm the location!

As for an excuse, Xia Heng thought for a moment, then decided she might as well throw caution to the wind.

“General… I… need to answer nature’s call.”

Mo Bai’s eyes widened beside her. Huh? Was she about to use her secret technique? Hadn’t she said she could not do it?

Cang Chuli choked on her words as well, though he recovered his composure a moment later.

“Do you need a torch?”

Xia Heng shook her head. “No!”

“Go, then. Watch your footing,” Cang Chuli instructed.

It was the dead of night, with bitter winds gusting through the mountains, yet Xia Heng was so mortified she actually felt warm.

She ran a little way off and hid behind a patch of bushes. Using her cloak to shield the phone, she took it out, terrified that even a sliver of light might escape and alert someone.

The magic-powered phone truly lived up to its name. Even deep in the mountains, it still had a full signal!

She opened the map and compared it repeatedly with the screenshot Xiao Yaqing had sent. At last, northeast of their current position, she found a stream identical to the one in the image!

Thank goodness they had not taken the wrong route! Yaqing should be over there!

Xia Heng took out her charcoal pencil and added several marks to her little map, sketching in the route and direction.

Then she sent Xiao Yaqing a message. To her surprise, the reply came instantly.

“We’re already on the mountain. We have to climb the rest of the way. We should arrive within two hours.”

“Got it! I’m still in the same place. Be careful on the way!”

“Wait for us! We’ll be there to save you soon!”

Once their exchange ended, Xia Heng returned the phone to her storage space and hurried back. Her cloak was so long that she even tripped over it once.

—

After pursuing the main road for roughly an hour, Dongfang Wei knew they had chosen incorrectly. Yaqing truly had not gone this way.

The reason was simple: rain appeared to have fallen here that afternoon, and the ground was still somewhat damp.

In the torchlight, the road ahead lay smooth and unmarked, without a single hoofprint.

There were only two scattered trails of footprints. Judging by their size, they belonged to two men. The soles bore the pattern of the rush-woven sandals commoners often wore in this season, and the impressions were shallow. One glance was enough to tell that the men had not been carrying anything heavy.

“We’re going back! Mo Qing, lead the way!”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

The group wheeled their horses around. By then, Cang Chuli’s party was already preparing to climb the mountain.

The Personal Guards of the General’s Mansion of Northern Pacification had all crossed this mountain on missions before. They also trained year-round, so the climb was not particularly taxing for them.

Amid the steady breathing of the group, one person’s panting stood out with painful clarity.

Mo Bai complained to Deputy General Zhang beside him, “Good thing we didn’t bring her along on those missions back then. With breathing that loud, the enemy could have found us from a kilometer away.”

Xia Heng heard his jab but was in no condition to retaliate.

There was no helping it. Her usual level of exercise was nowhere near enough to climb a mountain without panting!

How were these people walking as though they were on level ground? This was simply inhuman!

Cang Chuli reached out and steadied Xia Heng when she nearly tripped again.

“Why don’t you wait below?”

Xia Heng hurriedly replied, “No, no. I have to go!”

*If I don’t, how will you confirm the location? How will you communicate with Xiao Yaqing?*

Even if the chances of something going wrong were only one in ten thousand, that was still too much. She had to see Xiao Yaqing rescued with her own eyes before she could rest easy.

“I can still climb. I’m not tired, really! I can keep up. You don’t need to wait for me!”

Seeing how firmly she insisted, Cang Chuli only said, “Breathe in through your nose for two steps, then breathe out for two.”

Xia Heng immediately followed his instructions and stopped talking, staying close behind the others.

In her mind, she counted, *One, two. One, two.*

Whether the method truly worked or it was merely psychological, her lungs did seem much less strained.

The eastern sky was already beginning to pale.

Cang Chuli and the others waited in a dense forest for Mo Bai and Zhang Qiang, who had gone ahead to scout.

Xia Heng took out her little notebook and compared her surroundings with the sketch.

Cang Chuli had practiced archery for years and possessed exceptionally sharp eyesight. He saw at a glance that several things had been added to her crude map, and his eyes flickered.

Without a word, he moved to stand beside her, placing himself neatly between her and everyone else.

Only after she put the notebook away did he say, “The place you described should be just ahead.”

Xia Heng had only just confirmed the map herself. Hearing him, she nodded. That was right. This was the place!

Before long, the two scouts returned. Zhang Qiang reported grimly, “General, there is indeed a force of Tujue troops camped ahead. From the looks of it, there must be four or five hundred of them.”

Four or five hundred? Xia Heng frowned. Had she still called in too few reinforcements? Tsk. She had been too conservative!

After hearing the details, Cang Chuli issued his orders swiftly.

“One hundred men will remain here and launch a feigned attack from the front. The other two hundred will circle around with me and strike from behind.”

The three hundred Personal Guards immediately sprang into action.

In the small hours, Xiao Yaqing had finally been unable to hold out any longer and slept fitfully for a while.

The sky had barely begun to brighten when someone woke her and urged her to prepare. They were setting out.

Anxiety gnawed at her, but with the tent flap wide open, she did not dare take out the phone and contact Xia Heng. She could only use her bound hands to pack the bedding as slowly as possible.

That was when Huyan Lie arrived.

“Did Miss Xiao rest well last night?”

Xiao Yaqing glanced at him and edged backward, afraid the madman might come over and seize her by the throat again.

Huyan Lie waved a Hu flatbread in front of her.

“Surely Miss Xiao doesn’t still believe someone will come to save you?

“Once today has passed, even if someone learns where you went, they could never catch up unless they know how to fly.”

When she did not even raise her head, Huyan Lie instantly lost interest.

“It seems Miss Xiao still hasn’t thought matters through. In that case, I’ll save this Hu flatbread for next time!”